In the Mind of Nate

Greetings people. With the warm-er weather now here(finally) it is harder to sit down and write on a Saturday, which is usually when I do it. However, I had plenty of work to do with the upcoming re-release of the Imbolg album and the release from Of Beauty and Madness , titled Litany . For a long time I have been focusing on my own band and felt that I would not be able to devote the proper attention to another musical project, however this has taught me a lot about the dynamics of being a part of a band, as a member and not being the leader. I must say in some ways it is a relief to not have that burden on my shoulders. Even with the process of getting this album ready, I saw how much of a well oiled machine a band can be. We had a friend create the album artwork,we designed the rest,with the exception of a photo taken by another friend. We placed the order for the cds and distribution, and fortunately one band member lives close enough to Discmakers and was able to pick the ...

Hello everyone, I know that I have been absent for awhile now. But in the midst of this incredibly long winter(that is officially over and refuses to die) It has been hard to go out and enjoy life, write or perform. Although I did manage to perform recently with my Bass player, Lynn Haze at the Dorian Gray party here in NYC(see pic below). I have been busy finishing up two releases, and a long work project so that I can fund the things I love doing. Not to mention the Indie Gogo campaign we created has been keeping me occupied. Like anything else it has been an uphill battle and in hindsight I wish I had done more research before beginning the campaign. However, We are still struggling to make our goal and those who donate will receive perks such as downloads, keychains that our bass player Lynn Haze is making custom, and the most popular perk : pre-ordered copies of albums from Imbolg and Of Beauty and Madness . You can find out more about our campaign and how you can contribute ...

If you have read the past few posts I have made you may start to realize that being a musical artist isn't always about writing and performing music. Especially if you are a DIY or an independent artist. You have to be your own booking agent, manager, tour manager, publicist and sometimes even your own record label. These dual roles or "wearing many hats" is not easy and sometimes your performance can suffer as a result of it. Many managers also have law degrees, but do not practice. However their education in law helps them read and write contracts for their clients in order to be more effective as representation to their clients. If you would like more information on this topic, I suggest reading this book on Music Law . Here is a musical fact you may not know: Huey Lewis of Huey Lewis & the News actually managed the band he created. Dual roles in music are so common that nobody even gives them a second thought. How bands do you know engineer their own...

As you probably guessed, this entry is dedicated to the DJ or Disc Jockey . Technically they are not musicians, however they are a big part of the music industry and club circuits. They can also help further a musical artist's career by playing their music on their show or during their club sets. So it's a good a idea for bands to work along side of and cross promote Djs (as I stated in the past the business is give and take, you should help those when you can). I mentioned in previous entries most radio play is handle through a radio promoter, however it is in most cases ultimately the Dj that decides what songs get airplay. Like musicians, these Guys and Ladies usually focus on a specific genre of music and in many cases develop a style and personality to add flair to their overall appeal. In some cases have even established a certain "rockstar" status by making a name for themselves after years of spinning at events geared towards the genre they chose to spin. ...

Hello again everybody, this entry I will be focusing on running a smarter campaign to avoid the backlash overdoing your promotions or (worse case scenario) being labeled a "Spammer". Yes, people do throw that and many other terms around too loosely, we all do. And I admit I have been guilty of overdoing posts in the past. But instead of defending myself and starting arguments I decided to evaluate how I was going about spreading the word about my music and this blog while sharing what I learned with you. Your goal when being on social media is not just to get people into your music music but also, entertaining them or engaging them with an interesting post, like a picture you took or asking them a question about a music related topic. Make it interactive and not just about you, people will respond more and, to quote Bill Cosby but you may even learn thing or two (Hey Hey Hey). Yes it can be nerve racking to think that so many bands are out their posting their music an...

Now that the Holiday consumerism fest is over, those of us that have their sights set on accomplishing projects can finally get down to it. Although, it may be a bit harder the first weeks with all that extra Holiday weight you maybe carrying around. For myself, it is a very difficult part of the Holidays having to drop everything and trying to celebrate with not even one major task out of the way. Although the New Year does bring us hope that we can make things better for ourselves and many believe how you enter the New Year is how you shape the rest of it. As I'm sure you noticed by now, this a downtime for the entertainment industry as a whole. Show attendance and club events usually don't have as many numbers as they do in the months prior to the Holidays. The music industry actually shuts down and all business starts up again in the New Year, as there are many behind the scenes things happening and many trade shows in January, such as the NAMM show. So what is th...

Some of you that are linked up with me on Facebook probably know why I chose this title. I have been posting a video for a song with the same named from a band called the 69 Eyes around lately for various reasons. I felt the message of the song is good and I have been listening to this group a lot recently. Also, I just felt this was a fitting message to send people into 2014 with. A few weeks ago I warned everyone about the dangers of being sidetracked during the Holidays. Which I'm sure may have gone wayside, and justifiably so. I have found myself practically in panic mode not being able to get even the simple of tasks done(actually I'm lying I did come up with a few new riffs and lyrics) forgetting that this is a well earned break from all the pressure and stress that comes along with being a D.I.Y. musician/owner of a soon to be launched independent record label. I found myself very anxious too when thinking about spending time with the people that will accept ...